Will The New Star Wars Film Have Political Overtones?

Past movies sure have

When the first Star Wars prequel came out 15 years ago viewers noticed some suspiciously-named characters.

Episode One: The Phantom Menace's devious and deceitful Trade Federation leaders were Nute Gunray and Lott Dod. To some ears that sounded a lot like prominent Republican politicians at the time - then-Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott and recently-deposed House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

That was far from the only political turn of newer Star Wars films. Series mastermind George Lucas has contributed heavily to Democratic candidates and causes, and is an outspoken supporter of gun control, among other issues.

Consider the third Star Wars prequel, Revenge of the Sith, which portrayed series protagonist Anakin Skywalker - who would become the evil Darth Vadar - in George W. Bush mode. Released in 2005, fascist-leaning Anakin growls at one point, "If you're not with me, then you're my enemy."

To some that echoed Bush's address to a joint session of Congress on September 20, 2001 - nine days after the terror attacks that took nearly 3,000 lives - when the president said, "Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists."

New Film Series Coming

It's too early to say whether the new Star Wars films will include such political overtones. Star Wars Episode VII is scheduled for release on Dec. 18, 2015. It forms the first part of the planned third trilogy of Star Wars films, following chronologically in the series 30 years after 1983's Return of the Jedi. It will be the first Star Wars film produced since Disney acquired ownership of Lucasfilm.

There's some reason to think the films won't be so overtly political. After all, Lucas is no longer in control. J. J. Abrams of recent Star Trek film fame is directing Episode VII. It's based on a screenplay written by himself and Lawrence Kasdan, who acted as co-writer on The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. It appears likely that original cast members Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher will reprise their roles from Episodes IV, V, and VI.

Politics as Long-Running Theme

Of course the Star Wars prequels weren't the first to carry political themes. The beloved original series brought out ideas familiar to political junkies and political history buffs. As Boulder-Colo.-based writer Richard Carriero put it in a 2007 Yahoo essay, the three movies "Tell a story about war and peace, love and hate, betrayal and redemption, revenge and hope."

"Lucas patterned the Galactic Empire after the Nazi Reich," Carriero wrote. "The rows of identical foot soldiers and grim, uniformed officers are all emblematic of the fascist war machine created by Hitler."

"The imperial soldiers and officers are all white men with British accents; while there are all different types of aliens depicted in Star Wars - both neutral and fighting for the Rebel Alliance - you never see any aliens fighting for the Empire. Further you never see people of any other race fighting in Imperial uniforms. This frightening uniformity is further reminder of the racism at the heart of most fascist regimes - particularly the Nazis."

Old classic movies were just as rife with political overtones; Metropolis (1927), Lost Horizons (1937).........many others. War films with anti-war messaging go way, way back to the late teens and twenties.

My favorite "in your face, Hitler" movie that got me started watching old TCM movies......"The Mortal Storm" (1940) Jimmie Stewart as Jew escaping Nazi takeover of his friends, and farm, and his town, Frank Morgan (the "Wizard" in The Wizard of Oz) as the college science professor and head of a Jewish family dying in a concentration camp for suggesting Aryan blood's "superiority" was a farce, and strangely, both Robert Stack and Robert Young playing completely out of character (of "Untouchables" and "Father Knows Best" TV fame) as died-in-the wool Fascist Gestapo Nazis struggling with all the cultural changes happening in 1933 - 1935 in their tiny little German college town. Great movie.

Trivia: Right before it was released, Hitler sent a couple goons to MGM to pre-screen it, and received 100% assurances from Louis B. Mayer that "we won't release it", due to the visiting Nazi politicos squeamishness about its quite accurate portrayal of the subhumanization of Jews happening in Germany, 1933 - 1940, before we entered the war. The Germans left, went back to assure Hitler "no worries." MGM and Mayer immediately said "screw you" and released the film anyway.A few months later......we were in the War.

See it? Maybe when it comes out on Blue-ray or DVD. I hate today's movie theaters. They rape you at the box office and double rape you at the concession stand. I've been raped enough already by the .gov's..........As for "political overtones"......Some people see conspiracy in any-everything. That's just pure paranoid and if you're one of those people, please put your guns down and back away..........

@Denizen_Kate "Senior discounts"......I'm living in the Egypt river of De-Nile on that one (29 years old for the 29th time).....And I ain't got no purse........yet!But, the one thing I can't stand in theaters are CELL PHONES.

I took my Grandma out to a multiplex moviehouse, before she passed back around 1996 or so. When we got to the concession register with two popcorns and two sodas and i was handing the kid money, she glared at the poor teenager and said "usually the guy holding me up has a gun." And she looked at that kid dead serious. I was embarrassed a bit but people in line were breaking up laughing. That kid turned BEET red.(My Nana lived and worked 50 years in the industrial part of Oakland, CA, and a couple times she had beaten off muggers...) And back then it was probably only 10-11 bucks for that food...now it would be 15-16 bucks.

Actually, it's a fairly valid argument with regards to the Phantom Menace. But hey, it's about a group of rebels overthrowing an intergalactic military dictatorship. It's bound to have some kind of political overtones.

@TRex84 And since we are human and have never truly had interaction with aliens from other planets, every movie about space and space exploration will feature aliens that have human qualities. Its unavoidable at this point.

Sorry, I don't look for political overtones in movies like this. I'm a lifelong sci-fi geek (can't you tell?) and I've seen every Star Wars movie in the theater, just like I saw all the Star Trek movies up through Nemesis in the theater with my dad, who was a Trek fan.

@methinks George Lucas's first film..........a must-see. Interestingly enough, it starred Robert Duvall, who was just in the political news last week. Google it or read about it on IMDB. It is THE movie against government tyranny,(every citizen forced to take drugs, and imprisoned in little rooms).

Check it out and watch it when you can........And yes, the THX sound systems in our theaters was named after this movie.(1971) I was just a junior in High School when it hit the theatres........

The original 3 films from the 70's were epic masterpieces. The newer ones from the 90's were complete and total garbage. I think Lucas got in his own way. He failed to realize that the politically heavy tones of the movies were not good subject matter if he wanted to steer the films in the direction of kids movies, which he claimed, and which was his reasoning for Jar Jar Binks. The odd mixture of adult themes and tones, with (let's be honest here) cartoons, was almost jarring. In one film you have Anakin as a little kid winning the big race and becoming the hero, which is great television for kids. In the next, you have Anakin murdering the sand people and proclaiming "Not just the men, but the women, and the children too.." Not very kid friendly fair. Later he goes on to murder all the children in the Jedi Temple for good measure too. Those movies suffered from an identity disorder. They simply couldn't decide whether to be a family friendly cartoonish fun time, or a definitely adult oriented political talking point with a bunch of child murders thrown in.

However, with all that said. I have higher hopes for the next trilogy, since Lucas has stepped down, and hopefully, gotten out of the way. With J.J. Abrahms at the helm,(I think he did a fantastic job with the recent Star Trek movies) and Disney backing it, I am hoping to find a movie with a sense of identity. I think it may lean more towards the kid friendly fair, but hopefully that will mean we aren't subjected to hours of scenes of a fake congress talking about intergalactic politics that people care even less about, then watching our actual congress sitting around talking.

I'm also looking forward to what Abrams will do to this franchise. I like how he's reinvented Trek, just like Ron Moore (from ST:TNG, btw) reinvented Battlestar Galactica, which sans the sci fi, was an excellent human drama series.

"CLOVERFIELD"You might remember the movie teaser/trailer that was shown a lot on TV before the movie hit the theatres......(where a bunch of people at a party hear screaming and monster noises and then see "news alert" reports on their TV about a monster terrorizing and destroying things out in the waters around Manhattan. They rush downstairs from their large going-away party in a swanky apartment, and when they hit the ground-level street they look out just in time to see the head of the Statue of Liberty bouncing down the street........)

I think "Cloverfield" was the 3rd "Bad Robot" movie production.........and was criticized when released because parts of the movie were jumpy (from the hand-held cameras while running around and shooting video) that a few moviegoers were getting nauseous from all jerkiness on the screen........that same kind of nausea happened to me a few times way, way back when, from all those colored brick walls blurring by as you ran around and shot monsters and Nazis in the orignal "Wolfenstein" video game..........motion sickness. Have to stop, and go lie down, or take frequent breaks and look away from the 'puter screen.

Not a bad SciFi movie, a modernization of a Godzilla-type attack on New York..

Maybe check it out on IMDB and look at the user reviews. I use IMDB.com a lot to reference movies I'm watching when I know a voice but can't place it, or can't remember an actor's name.(obviously I am an OCD classic movie nut.......)

@Denizen_Kate I have an very aged "uncle" (really a 2nd or 3rd cousin) who became famous in the movie and TV business, working from the 1930's all the way to the present.(Gene Reynolds.)Gene started as a child actor who became a pretty famous TV producer, in the 1970-1980s (M.A.S.H., etc.) and he's still producing/directing plays out on Catalina island at some playhouse there, even now in his mid-90's. Gene was standup father-figure to us boys when we were tiny tots, constantly stepping in and helping my Mom financially after my folks split when I was 5. Dad was a smart successful salesman, but he was always losing jobs because of his temper and stubbornness. I didn't care a whit about old movies until 2008, but now I'm getting quite a collection and some knowledge about the old movie industry.....and I keep seeing Gene's kid bit parts, and sometimes performing as an uncredited actor. He was told that he wouldn't make it as an adult actor because he was too short......(as was the case.)

Probably Gene's "biggest" acting role was when he appeared as "Tony", in "Boys Town" with Spencer Tracy, as the studious crippled kid with the short leg who runs against Mickey Rooney for Class President. But his acting career goes as far back as a bit part in "Captain's Couragious."

OK, enough-don't get me started on movies! I will empty the entire damn message board with my ramblings, with the posters running away as I drone on forever about movie trivia.......well, I guess I have that effect already, anyway.:-/

Well, I don't think it can escape political overtones given that it's about people rebuilding democratic institutions after the fall of fascism. But I'm sure they will be less the focus than they were in Revenge of the Sith.

Is it possible that they will touch on the demise of our dollar that is currently taking place? A salient point such as this would be counterproductive of Hollywood in exposing this administrations intent. However, they may expedite the theory of nirvana is just around the corner.with Obamasnare.<wink>

It may not be quite as prevalent now that Lucas is not directly involved, but he did leave a lot of notes behind so its entirely possible. I suspect it ill be more about the action and less about the subplots now that the gang at Disney have their hands on it.